The Frozen Path
by FantasyFoSho
Summary: Once, a hero arose to save the world. A young woman shrouded in mystery who fought to bring magic back into a land cursed by darkness. She failed. But not entirely. Many years later, with the means to fight firmly restored to their hands, a gifted few have banded together to finish what she started.


The sky pulsed white as lightning arced through rolling dark clouds.

It was raining.

Agdar stretched out his hand to touch the window pane, feeling the cool glass and frequent vibrations. Outside, the Rend toiled. A furious storm of magic gone out of control. It came only once a month, but even so that was once too often. It was a wonder that anything managed to survive outside of Arendelle's stormshield.

Jolts of electricity crashed against the bubble of concentrated magic that surrounded the town, each strike sending veins of iridescent light rippling across the dome's surface. The protective dome, a stormshield, could be found in all of the major cities of the Dominance. It was powered by a glyphward, an arrangement of glyphs—letters, that had the power to pull magic from their surroundings and concentrate it into a useable form, that use embedded within and activated by the ward itself.

 _Magic._ Agdar frowned. It wasn't so long ago that the word was taboo. Even he found himself uncomfortable with it despite have grown up alongside arcanists. Despite being married to one.

Another flash of lightning. Another resounding crash. The walls thrummed. A crowd responded with a cheer.

 _Fools!_

Agdar's house was set on a ledge, the last house built on the respectable middle level of the city. His window granted him a view of the lower levels. If the view was even the slightest bit pleasant, Agdar would not have been able to afford the cost of purchase.

Fortunately—or not, depending on who in the house you spoke to, the lower level of the city was mostly decrepit. Old, decaying houses. Beggars on the street. Dangerous silhouettes stalking the alleyways during the night. Agdar had thought about boarding up the windows. All of them, at least on that face.

The lower level featured a large square, one that usually was filled with grubby merchants peddling their wares. Daytime in the lower level was much like the middle level. Busy, most tending to their own business. At night, however, things changed. A large crowd had gathered in the center of the square. Hooded and cloaked, they chanted blasphemies. Agdar turned away.

Normally he would be able to find some enjoyment in the sight— he Rend, not the chanting cultists. but not on this night. Perilous circumstances abounded, and on his forehead were finally indented the creases of his worry manifested. A once a month event, and yet this marked the third Rend of that week. The cultists only made his anxiety worse.

Agdar frowned.

"Father?" a soft voice asked.

Though the room was dark behind him, that voice always brought him light.

"Elsa, you should be in bed." Agdar said. He relaxed his face, put on the fake smile he'd learned to wear, and turned to take his daughter into his arms. She was joy personified and the last thing he wanted was to give her a reason to be sad. But Elsa never failed to surprise him. Though only seven, she was aware of far more than he often gave her credit for.

"Ma and Anna aren't back yet, Pa, and there's a storm." Elsa said, her bright blue eyes wide and afraid and glinting with purplish reflections of the storm outside. Agdar knew that the topic could not be avoided much longer, but to bring his daughter the barest amount of ease, he pulled her in close for a hug.

In the embrace, Agdar felt a slick wetness slide across his cheek, and his darling daughter began to sob. "They're coming back aren't they?" she asked, her voice cracking.

"They'll be back, sweet." Agdar told her confidently, though the beast of doubt within him began to stir. Idun had taken Anna to the neighbouring city of Everhart less than a week prior, after the month's storm—or so they thought .

They were to return tonight, but no word had come ahead of their arrival. Not from Idun, nor from Everhart. Since the past week's storm the neighboring city had become silent, the lines of communication all but cut. Had Everhart's stormshield fallen? If that was so then that would have left the people of Everhart exposed to the stormspawn, and everyone knew only ashes followed in their wake. But Idun had magic. Agdar knew they would be alright as long as they stayed together.

But then the lightning flashed a third time and with it came images of the stormspawn. Gigantic insect-like creatures with knobbed limbs and rows upon rows of dagger sized teeth. They came in various shapes and sizes, but even the smallest towered over any man. Unlike common monsters they were fearless, attacking even if they were outnumbered greatly if only so they could taste but the barest drop of human blood.

"We should go, Father." said Elsa, dragging him from his thoughts. Agdar looked towards his eldest, just as lightning struck once more. Her illuminated face was still wet with tears, but there was conviction in her eyes.

"Oh Elsa…" Agdar whispered.

"Mother and Anna need us!" the girl said, tugging on his arm. "We need to help them!"

But what could they do? Agdar couldn't bring himself to say the words. If his worst fears had indeed come true, there was little he would be able to do to help. Idun was a full fledged arcanist, a practiced wielder of Lyra's holy light. If she could not defend herself against the stormspawn, all he would be doing by rushing to her aid was adding another death to the count and Elsa would be left with no family instead of just one.

 _Instead of just one._

The words sickened him and a pit in his stomach formed for just having thought of it. No, that would be just as bad a fate, and he could never live with allowing his wife and daughter to die and having done nothing to save them. He swore his vows beneath Lyra, and though on this night she did not shine, he was forever bound to uphold them.

Agdar looked at Elsa, her bright blue eyes fierce in the face of the shining hues of the purple streaked night. The flashes of lightning seemed concurrent with her blinks, though her gaze remained steady. It was then that he noticed that look she held mirrored the one his wife gave him, one night long ago. The two of them were stranded in the outskirts, foolishly late for curfew and the closing of the city gates on the night of the Rend. They banged heavily on the gate then, but whoever manned them had deemed them not worth saving, or were simply absent as they did not receive a response. They should have died that day, but Agdar remembered the determination in Idun's eyes.

"I'm going." Agdar said finally. He put a firm hand on his daughter's shoulder as she made to follow him. "I need you to stay here, my sweet Elsa." he told his daughter, struggling as he made his final parting words. "Your mother and your sister will need a warm bed to sleep in before the night is done. Will you prepare that for them?"

Elsa looked at him with worried eyes. Probing for something, her curious mind always at work. But whatever she was thinking, she did not bring it to voice, as she only nodded her agreement.

Agdar stopped at the door, turning around to give his daughter his a fleeting smile. The last of his smiles that she would ever see. Lightning flashed, and he was gone.


End file.
